Too fast sorry if it's long.

[Claire Louise]

I am currently riding my boyfriends hunter and am having one problem. When jumping she tanks into the fences usually resulting in a pole down.

Any ideas on schooling???

It was longer first time i wrote it but it wiped and i couldn't remember all that I had said!!

[DITZ]

I had the same problem with mine but mine was a confidence problem (ie rushed them because of lack of confidence). Wouldnt have though the same would apply to you though as it sounds like, being a hunter, he has done lots of jumping before (mine was a newbie).

[larri]

GRIDS!!!! Usually work wonders with slowing horses down - and getting them to be more careful where they are putting their feet.

Best to start off small and on the lunge (you have to be a good runner tho' lol!) or loose in a taped lane to let them sort themselves out and then ride them.

Placing poles before a jump can help too but make it a good clear stride between - some horses try to take off for the jump before the pole!

[IrisSilverMoon]

halt before and after the fence, make sure the fences are pretty low for this as I would reccomend once you halt (back up too if you wish) you take the jump at a walk, once over stop again. Eventually she should get the idea that you could possibly want her to stop at any time and she had better start paying attention to you.

you can even mix it up so she doesn't always expect the stop, you can not stop before or after the fence, or stop at different places before and after the jump. You really know she's listening if you can stop in the stride before the take off.

[intouch]

2 or 3 small jumps in a circle and keep going till she is so bored with it she will calm down and listen to you. Hopefully.

[Casper]

thats not unusual with hunters, any i have ever riden take off a mile before the jump so much that you have to ride in a 2 point canter. it's just there training to jump fast rather than accurate.
i agree with larri GRIDS but watch out for the placing pole she could just jump that aswell resulting in you being left behind!!

as for stopping, i would stop after the jump, wait count to 10 turn around walk/trot to the fence, jump, stop, count and stay doing this. not sure about coming to a halt before the jump this could teach him that it's alright to stop and get him into a bad habit of refusing . remember this is very hard work for your horse so take him easy and good luck!

[mister jones]

i had the same ploblem!!

try walking to the fence then when you are about 5 strides out ask him to trot on i did this and my gelding now takes fences at an easy trot or slow canter!

hope this helps!:D

good luck

keep us posted

[IrisSilverMoon]

Originally posted by Casper
as for stopping, i would stop after the jump, wait count to 10 turn around walk/trot to the fence, jump, stop, count and stay doing this. not sure about coming to a halt before the jump this could teach him that it's alright to stop and get him into a bad habit of refusing .

that's why you don't halt everytime. Your horse should be listening to what you say, that means when you ask for halt he halts, when you don't ask he goes. I've been doing this for years and never run into a horse that all of a sudden decided it was alright to stop because I'd asked before. The point is that the horse shouldn't be anticipating what you are going to ask of him (like stopping OR going) by speeding up throught the jump the horse is anticipating that you actually want him to jump. the halting says, "no, you jump when I say" you should only ever have to do this if the horse starts speeding up and going faster than what you would wish.

[Casper]

sorry i'v never asked a horse to stop before a jump so don't know how he would react!! just wonderig after you stop do you turn around again? asking him to jump seems hard as he wont see the jump! however i have walked out stopped a stride or so away then asked for canter do you think it's the same or am i doing something different?

[IrisSilverMoon]

well if i'm stopping a few strides out its usually a pretty small jump and no bigger than two feet so the horse can still take it from a walk or halt. If i'm stopping immediately in front of the fence its usually a six inch cross rail so they can take it from a halt.

generally I would only be stopping a few strides out then continuing at a walk or trot and maybe halt again after the fence, I try not to halt immediatly in front of the fence too much, i think i've only done that once or twice when my instructor wanted us to check exactly how good our breaks were and that we could pick any point to stop, not just a few strides out.

I think what you are doing sounds about the same, we don't usually canter, but it really doesn't matter what gait you take the fence at if the fence is small enough.

personally for me unless its a big fence i won't turn around and go at it again, depends on the fence and the horse though...:)

[jUmPingIsLifE]

another vote for grid work, its great for both horse and rider.

also i have done exersizes where we would walk into jumps. whenever the horse takes off make a point to stop as quick as possible after the jump, and if he takes the jump nicley that let him flow around the ring or something. i have also stoped a horse before the jump before too because she was completly taking off with me to the jump (this can't be done often and you need to be careful as not to start a habbit of refusing).
goodluck

[Casper]

''101 jumping exercises for horse and rider'' is a great book for grids !!

[DITZ]

We have done continual work on this as I said before mine was lacking in confidence so some of the ones we have done are as previously mentioned...stopping before the jump and stopping after the jump. Also using two jumps on a related distance and halting betwen the two then when you've got a good halt trotting over the second. You can also try circling before the jump if you feel hes too fast and also missing the jump completely and going to the side. The main point is that YOU decide when to jump not him.

That said am about to post another thread of my own on this subject as have just had back to square one experience at a show!

[Wally]

I used to ride a mad mare like this. I would ride her in the jumping ring on the flat only, then jump one fence on the way out. Then next day maybe one jump fairly early on in the session, 10m circles in front of fences but never allow them to jump if there was any degree of rushing.

After a few weeks of this I would do more and more, but NEVER if she rushed unntil finally she got the message. It worked wonders on the hunting field to as many was the time I was carted over a HUGE hegde just because everyone else did!:eek: :eek: :eek: She would then wait to be told which fence to jump.